


Attachment

by Sydders09



Series: Doctor Sleep (Dan Torrance) [1]
Category: Doctor Sleep (2019), Doctor Sleep - Stephen King
Genre: Angst, Dreams, F/M, Fluff, Steamy, Suggestive Themes, Supernatural - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-21
Updated: 2019-11-21
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:34:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21516127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sydders09/pseuds/Sydders09
Summary: You dealing with the aftermath of that night at the Overlook Hotel.
Relationships: Dan "Danny" Torrance/Reader, Dan "Danny" Torrance/You
Series: Doctor Sleep (Dan Torrance) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1561981
Comments: 15
Kudos: 56





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You made your way up to Abra’s room to tell her dinner was ready while her mother, Lucy, finished setting it out.

You had been visiting more often since the Overlook Hotel burned down. Sometimes you’d stay the night there. Going home to your apartment hurt too much.

Abra’s voice sounded through her door as if she was talking to someone. The moment you knocked, the talking ceased and she welcomed you inside.

You smiled at her, shutting the door behind you. “Dinner’s ready.”

“Okay. Thanks.”

You scanned over all the _RWBY_ memorabilia in the room. “Who were you talking to?”

Abra looked toward her window. “A friend.”

You followed her gaze to see nothing there. “Your shine?”

She nodded.

“Anyone I know?” Only one person came to your mind.

“Yeah.”

“Who?”

“Uncle Dan.”

You sucked in a breath, staring at the wall again. What you wouldn’t do to see him standing there, solid... alive.

“Is... Is he here right now?”

Abra nodded again. She could see him as if he were still alive. She watched his eyes light up when you walked in and she saw his despair while you tried to keep your sorrow inside. He stood in front of you looking helpless.

“Where?” Your voice was hoarse from the tears you hadn’t shed yet.

Abra climbed off her bed and stood beside you both. Holding her hand out, she waited for Dan to place his hand there. She then took your hand and place it over his. Abra held them there and focused on the feeling.

Your eyes widened feeling something you couldn’t see. Chewing on your lip, you stared where you imagined Dan would stand.

Abra smiled.

“Tell her she’ll chew a hole through her lip if she doesn’t stop that,” Dan said to Abra, his eyes glued to your face.

“Uncle Dan says to stop doing that or you’ll chew through your lip.”

He used to tease you endlessly for abusing your bottom lip when you felt any sort of strong emotion. You used to hate it when you first met Dan Torrance. But the more you two saw each other whether it was at Billy’s apartment at strange hours of the night or around town, you grew used to it. Now you missed it.

“Shut up, Danny,” you whispered, fighting against the ache in your chest.

A sad half-smile graced his lips. “How has she been, Abra?”

The young girl looked at you. “She stays here a lot.”

You glanced at Abra. “It hurts going home.”

“Y/N doesn’t sleep when she’s there.”

“I miss you...”

Dan frowned, reaching out to touch the side of your face. Of course, you couldn’t feel it. “Abra? Think you can help me out?”

“I have an idea,” Abra grinned, dropping both hands so she could lie on her bed. She closed her eyes for a second and when they opened again, they were white.

You looked at the girl curiously until you felt a hand caress your face. You gasped and your tears finally fell seeing a very real Dan standing in front of you. You pressed your hands against his chest, slid them up and around his shoulders before cradling his face. He was really standing in front of you.

“H-How?”

He nodded toward Abra.

“What an incredible girl,” you said in awe.

Dan suddenly wrapped his arms around you and squeezed. You nuzzled your face against his chest and hugged back as tightly.

You thought about one of the last times you saw him... touched him. 

_The three of you stood on the steps in the lobby of the Overlook while Rose the Hat sauntered closer. Dan held an ax in his hands in case throwing her into his mind didn’t end well. And it didn’t..._

_He told you to run, but you descended the few stairs that separated you from him. You covered one of his hands and quietly told him to be careful._

_“Y/N,” he said as you turned away. “Keep Abra safe.”  
_

_You nodded. You went up to the girl, took her hand, and ran. It was almost impossible to keep running when you heard Dan’s screams echo through the abandoned hotel. Tears streamed down your face as you left him behind._

But that wasn’t the last time you saw him.

_You and Abra got separated, but you found her again in room 237. Dan stood in front of her with the ax, no longer the Dan Torrance you left with Rose. You didn’t hesitate to run in and come between the ax and Abra. Luckily, she already broke through to him.  
_

_The real Dan stared at you both horrified. “You can’t stay here. I can’t keep them away for long.”_

_Abra begged him to fight back and leave with you, but there was no way he could. He knew that and you did, too. He had to go down with the hotel._

_You took the ax out of his hands, dropping it to the floor, and kissed him hard. Your hands went into his hair just as his gripped your waist._

_It wasn’t exactly the way you intended telling him how you felt after years and years of hiding it, but you no longer had a choice to keep it to yourself. He couldn’t do whatever he had to do without knowing._

_Your noses still touched when you pulled out of the kiss, eyes closed and hands still on each other. Fresh tears stained your cheeks._

_“I love you,” you whispered, kissing him again.  
_

_A muted sob left him and his fingers gripped your waist tighter. “I love you.”_

_All you had time for was one more searing kiss before you had to let him go. You took Abra’s hand again and ran with one more look back at him. The image of his eyes shiny with tears and the visible struggle on his face, whether or not his decision was the right one, was burned forever in your memory._

_Watching the hotel burn left you on your knees in the snow weeping for the man you would never see again, the man you loved. Abra hoped Dan would get out, but it was no use. He had to do it._

“Why can’t you sleep, Y/N?” Dan asked, his eyes shifting between yours.

“You and Billy are gone. It hurts too much to dream about what happened.”

Dan ran his fingers through your hair. “I’m so sorry...”

“I’ll manage.”

“Please don’t torture yourself. You have so much ahead of you still.”

You looked up at him with a sad smile. “What’s the point if you’re not here anymore?”

Dan took your face in his hands. “Abra needs you. You promised to protect her.”

“How can I do that when I can’t get out of bed most days? How can I when everything triggers the nightmare of that night? I want to be there for Abra... I do, but my heart aches. I feel like dying every day. This world is so much darker without you in it... without Billy...”

“I’m still here. You just can’t see me.”

“But I want to see you! I want to be like this with you and I can’t.” You wiped your eyes. “I can’t even dream about you because I’m afraid to sleep.”

“Try tonight. I’ll find you there if you’ll let me.”

“You’re always welcome, Danny.”

“My mom is coming,” Abra said softly.

Dan instigated that kiss, putting a hand at the back of your head to pull you in. “Go home tonight and I promise I’ll meet you there,” he said against your lips.

You nodded, kissing him one last time before Abra had to cut off the connection. She sat upright before her mom came in.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, Mom. Sorry. We were talking.”

You cleaned up your face and turned to look at Lucy with a smile. “Just some girl talk.”

“Okay.” She didn’t buy it completely. “Well, dinner’s getting cold, so...”

You patted her shoulder and went down to dinner. For the first time in a long time, you were eager to go home.

* * *

You walked into the apartment complex on a mission. Out of habit, you went up to Billy’s floor and stood in front of his door with your hand pressed against it. You knew him so much longer than Dan. He was like a brother to you and you missed him. Helping Abra had risks, you all knew that. It still didn’t lessen the pain of loss.

You went up another floor to Dan’s old apartment. Again, you stood at the door.

You weren’t ashamed to admit you transferred apartments soon after Overlook. You were afraid of losing what you had left of Dan, so you pleaded with the landlord for the apartment. She conceded once you promised to pay off what you owed on your lease, which wasn’t more than a few months rent.

Taking out the key, you slipped it into the lock and turned it. There were no lights on inside and the air was cool thanks to the winter season. You shut the door behind you and flipped on the lights.

Your eyes went straight to the chalkboard wall that was still cracked from Abra’s power. “Murder” sat in the center of the spiderweb of cracks, the cry for help she sent to Dan when the baseball kid was being killed. From what Abra told you, the poor boy suffered the worst kind of death. You found yourself praying for his family when he crossed your mind.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, hearing the squeak made you pause. Your behavior after that night at the Overlook Hotel was far from sane, breaching on obsessive. You knew it wasn’t good for you, but you didn’t want to stop. Too many times you promised yourself a trip to a therapist for help through the loss. But you were afraid of what you'd have to give up.

Eventually, you tossed your coat on the floor and rummaged through the dresser that not only held your clothes but some of Dan’s. You couldn’t bring yourself to get rid of anything. A few boxes of his things sat in the closet untouched since you moved in.

You took out a pair of your pajama pants and a sweater you secretly favored of Dan’s. You still remember when you first saw him wear it. 

_You were already pretty deep in your love for him by then and you grinned at him like it was Christmas morning. When he turned to talk to Billy about something, you studied him, feeling your cheeks get warm. The olive green of the sweater made his light hair look redder and his eyes were the clearest blue you’d ever seen. You had been so lost in checking him out that you didn’t notice Billy asked you something._

_“Huh?” You resisted glancing back at Dan.  
_

_“I asked where you wanted to go for lunch.” Billy knew instantly why you were distracted. He raised an eyebrow at you, shifting his eyes to Dan. The red that colored your face was the exact reaction he hoped for.  
_

_“Are you feeling all right?” Dan asked you.  
_

_“Yup and anything sounds good. I can eat pretty much anything.”  
_

_“I’m sure,” Billy teased.  
_

_Dan walked over to you and put his hand on your forehead. “You don’t have a fever, do you? Your face is a little warm.”_

_You blinked. “Uh, no. I’m fine. It’s just a little warm in the room. You worry too much, Danny.”_

_He smiled and you coughed a little to keep a sigh quiet. You were a downright mess when Dan Torrance was around._

You hugged the sweater to yourself.

Once you changed, you crawled into bed and held the pillow to your chest. It was just another thing of Dan’s you didn’t store away.

It took hours of trying different relaxation methods before you finally fell asleep. But you didn’t _feel_ like you were asleep. It was the strangest sensation. It was as if you slipped through a portal in the bed that led to the same bed in a different dimension... a dimension that had Dan lying in front of you with a gentle smile.

“Hi,” you whispered, studying his face. He still wore the clothes he had on the last night you saw him. You wondered if he’d always be stuck in that outfit.

“Hey,” he said back, immediately tugging on the sleeve of your sweater. “This is familiar.”

“It’s my favorite. It made your eyes look bluer, you know that?”

“I honestly had no idea.”

You hugged his hand to your chest. “I couldn’t think straight when you wore this. It’s pretty embarrassing really.”

“That explains a lot,” he smiled.

Blushing, you squeezed his hand. “So, uh, is this something you can do all the time? Or is there like some sort of timer for you before you’re whisked away for good?”

“I don’t know. The spirits at the Overlook still hang around. They just chose someone else to latch onto.”

“Abra?”

“Unfortunately.”

“Because of her shine?”

He nodded.

“Can I do anything to help her? Can you?”

“I think Abra can handle it. She smart, strong.”

“Are you still here because you’re attached to her, too?”

“Yes... and no. A part of me is attached to you.”

“But I’m not like you or Abra.”

Dan freed his hand so he could brush his fingers through your hair. “No, but you have my heart.”

You rolled your eyes and let out a watery laugh. “That’s so cheesy, Danny.”

“Well, it’s the truth.”

“It’s still sappy.” You scooted closer and snuggled against him. His body heat radiated around you when he his arms circled you. “But I like it.”

You closed your eyes when Dan kissed your forehead. It was something he started doing when saying goodbye to you after a couple of years of being friends. Billy used to tease him about it all the time, saying Dan liked you better since he never got the same treatment. Of course, Dan proceeded to goofily peck the man’s forehead. Those carefree moments when nothing in the world could tear you down were what you missed most of all.

“I should have told you I loved you a long time ago, Danny,” you said. “We could have had more than a few minutes.”

“Almost eight years of friendship wasn’t so bad.”

“No, it was perfect, but we would have gone on dates if I said something sooner. We would have held hands or kissed each other someplace we thought was private.” You played with the zipper on his jacket. “At some point, we’d finally sleep together – Billy would be sick and tired of the sexual tension – and we would be thoroughly addicted to it. I’d hope for a ring and you’d give me one in your sweet, thoughtful way... We’d start our own little family and live in a cute suburban neighborhood. Abra would always be over, too. She’d babysit our kids and they’d call her Aunt Abby...”

Dan’s ears were red when he had you look at him. “I’m sorry I can’t be the one to give you that life. You know I would have. I wouldn’t want anything else if I had you.”

“That’s the thing, Dan... You do have me. You always will. Dying... Dying didn’t change that.”

Finally, Dan kissed you deeply, one hand pushing your hips closer to his and the other caressing your cheek. He nudged your nose with his and smile. “You really wanted to have a family with me?”

You nodded and a few tears slipped out. You kissed the corner of his mouth. “I knew you would make a good father one day because you took the step to be better than your addiction, better than your father. You’re too kind to be like him.”

“I almost killed Abra, Y/N...”

Again, you put your lips against his. “But you didn’t. You had self-control and stopped.”

You hadn’t noticed Dan’s hand go under your sweater until his fingers touched the skin of your hips.

“I really don’t have any self-control, you know,” his whispered before kissing you slowly.

You laughed when he tickled your side. “I love you so much, Danny.”

He hummed and kissed along your jaw. Goosebumps rose on your flesh when his breath fanned over your ear. “I love you, too, Y/N... Even in death.”

You laid back and wrapped your arms around Dan’s shoulders while he studied your face. He wiped your tears away despite them still falling. “Why did you have to die?”

Dan planted his lips on yours so you wouldn’t cry. He hated seeing you so hurt. Had he known your feelings before trapping Rose, he might have been more careful. Yet... he still chose to go down with the hotel when he knew how much he loved you. Maybe it was just the way it was meant to be.

Your hands traveled under his coat and started pulling it over his shoulders. He broke away to slide his arms out and toss it to the floor. You pulled him back by the back of his neck and tried to tone down your desperation.

“This is only a dream,” Dan reminded you between kisses along your throat.

“I know.”

“It might feel real, but I won’t be here when you wake up. I mean, I’ll be around but you can’t see me... touch me.” He brushed your hair away from your face.

“Dan, I know.”

He kissed your nose. “I’ve been watching you, Y/N, and I don’t want you to lose yourself in something that isn’t reality. I’m no more than a ghost.”

“Just kiss me and let me deal with ghost-you infiltrating my dreams later. It’s the last thing on my mind right now,” you said while working on the buttons of his flannel shirt.

Dan searched your face before kissing your lips again. He didn’t break away that time to remove the flannel shirt for you. He tried to keep his mouth on your skin when you tugged his t-shirt up his torso, but the kissing had to be put on pause so he could pull it over his head.

Your fingers trailed up his stomach and to his chest where they stayed to fully enjoy the feeling of the hair there.

“Do you feel this?” you asked while kissing his jaw.

“Yes.” His voice was airy.

“Is it good?”

He laughed lightly. “Yes.”

You met his lips again and tangled your fingers in his hair.

Cautiously, Dan slipped his hands back under your sweater. He pulled it up enough to reveal your stomach, much to your curiosity. The first time his lips touched the skin above your hipbone you shivered, hands messing his hair up worse than before.

The kiss he left on your lower abdomen when he pulled the waistline of your sleep pants just down far enough to do that caused you to suck in a breath. You weren’t sure if your dream was heightening your senses or if it was because of Dan.

Both of you took slow deliberate steps to rid each other of the remaining articles of clothing separating you. Dan left kisses on every bit of skin he revealed, taking your breath away.

He returned to your lips and let his hands roam across your body. You couldn’t resist arching your back to get closer to him.

“This is already better than any dream I’ve had about you where sex was involved,” you breathed.

“I’m flattered you dreamt about me like this before.”

You smile and kissed his cheek. “Why wouldn’t I? You are the sexiest man I’ve ever seen in my life. You are so quiet, kind, and your smile when you are really happy is so... I love it.”

A grin lit up his face, making you giggle.

“Yes, like that.” You held his hair away from his face and left a series of gentle kisses on and around his mouth. “No other man compares to you. This dream has ruined me further and we’ve only made it this far.”

“I love you,” he said with a passionate kiss.

“Mm.” You let your hands wander over his chest and shoulders to his back and arms. They landed back in his hair as the kiss deepened and Dan made the next move.

All you felt was pure bliss – it was a dream after all. There was no need to take it slow, though Dan was adamant to love you as completely as possible. And he did several times over in that single dream.

You laid in his arms, feeling sleep fall over you but you fought against it. You wanted to stare at Dan as long as you could before the dream had to end.

You traced his lips with your finger and stared into his blue eyes so full of love for you. It was perfect and you never wanted to forget it.

“You need to wake up, Y/N.”

You shook your head, watching him kiss the pad of your finger. “I’m not ready.”

“I can always come back. You'll be late for work if you don’t get up.”

You frowned. “I hate it when you’re right.”

“I want you to stay, too, but you still live in the real world. Just don’t daydream your whole day away.”

Blushing, you leaned forward and kissed him one more time. “Shut up, Danny.”

He chuckled. “I love you, too.”

You blinked slowly. “You’ll come back tonight?”

“I will.”

You closed your eyes and smiled. “I love you... and miss you, Dan.”

All you heard in return was the alarm on your cellphone. Your eyes snapped open and you were greeted by the ceiling, still in the clothes you fell asleep in. But the feeling in your dream was heavy on your body. It was the most relaxed you felt in weeks.

You didn’t bother changing out of the sweater, slipping a bra on under it. Since it fell low enough on your thighs, you put on some black leggings with tan boots that went up to your ankles. Your hair went up into a messy bun and then you finished the rest of your morning routine before it was time to go.

At the door, you scanned over the apartment and gave it a little smile.

“See you later, Danny,” you whispered. Then you were on your way.

* * *

**BONUS:**

Abra met you at the little shop you worked at when she got off school. She liked to walk with you to either her house or your apartment and that day it was your apartment she wanted to go to. She just wanted to spend some time with her Aunt Y/N.

“Did Uncle Dan visit you last night?” she asked, swinging your hand between you both. “I didn’t hear from him, so I assumed he did.”

You kept your blush down. “Yeah, he did.”

“What did you talk about?”

You shrugged. “Stuff. Mostly cheesy romantic things.”

“Right, because you love each other.” Abra scrunched her nose. “Did you get to play any board games or watch some movies? You know, dream ones.”

“Uh, not really,” you laughed.

Dan walked behind you both – you unaware of it. His face reddened and he silently begged you not to say anything.

“Well, what did you do? It doesn’t sound very fun.”

“Abra, I’m not going to tell you because it’s personal. Maybe someday I will. Now is not the best time.”

“Ugh, I bet you kissed... a lot.” She peered at Dan who was shaking his head and blushing brightly. Abra smirked.

“Yes. Now stop prying.”

Abra was silent for about a minute, her mind shaking answers right out of your head, and then she gasped. She ripped her hand out of yours and her mouth hung open in disgust. “You did it with Uncle Dan?!”

“Did you just go through my mind? Abra!”

“Abra...” Dan groaned, his ears, neck, and cheeks a deep shade of red.

“That’s disgusting!”

“Oh, my God. I can’t believe you did that! What did you see? No! Don’t tell me. I don’t want you to see it again.”

“It’s burned in my brain forever!”

“Don’t go looking through my thoughts then!”

Dan scratched the back of his head. “Maybe you both should stop shouting in the middle of the sidewalk.”

Abra glared at him. “We’ll yell if we want to!”

You searched the area Abra glared at. “Dan?”

“He’s been following you all day.”

“Oh... Hello, Danny.”

Dan’s eyes lit up and his frown transformed into a lopsided grin. “Hello again, Y/N.”

Abra gagged. “He says hi with hearts in his eyes.”

You chuckled awkwardly remembering your dream. You started chewing on your lip. Dan neared and lovingly reached out to touch your face although you couldn’t feel it.

“You two are gross. I’m going home.” She shook her head at you. “I can’t believe you had sex with Uncle Dan.”

“You’ll understand one day, Abra!” you called out. You covered your mouth and started to giggle watching her jog away.

Dan smiled finding you absolutely adorable. His heart ached knowing he couldn’t tell you right then. He wanted to kiss your cheek and whisper how cute you were, but he had to wait.

“I can’t believe she did that,” you said, hoping Dan was still there.

“I’m sure it was at the front of your mind,” he replied knowing he would have to repeat it later.

Abra knowing about you and Dan was horrible, but you laughed with Dan when he came into your dreams again that night.

“She’ll never look at us the same way again,” you said, laying your arm across his naked torso. You kissed his shoulder. “I love Abra, but she’s gotta listen when someone tells her no.”

“She may never speak to us again,” Dan grinned cheekily.

“I hope that isn’t the case.”

A knock echoed through the dream and you jumped.

“Was that in here?”

Dan sat up and stared at the door. “I think so.”

You got out of bed, slipping on a sweater that covered all the important bits, and opened the door enough to peek out. There you found an apologetic Abra fiddling with her fingers.

“I’m sorry for invading your privacy and then freaking out today,” she said. “It’s just weird to think about you and Uncle Dan like that.”

“H-How did you get in my dream?”

“It’s not hard. It’s as easy as looking into your head.”

“Oh... Well, I forgive you for earlier. Just please don’t go through my mind when I don’t want to tell you something.”

Abra nodded. She looked over your shoulder and her face twisted in disgust. “ _Again_?! Really!?”

You glanced behind you to see Dan standing there in jeans, his chest still bare. He looked so handsome with that cheeky grin thanks to Abra’s second freak out of the day.

You shrugged and smiled at him. “What can I say? I love him.”

“I’m out.” And Abra vanished.

You shut the door and wrapped your arms around Dan’s middle. “Maybe she’ll leave us alone when she knows we’re together.”

“Maybe.” He kissed your nose and your forehead.

Smiling, you pecked his lips. “Want to play a card game?”

“I’d love to.”

For years you and Dan met up in your dreams until the day you stopped dreaming thanks to a drunk driver – a man from Billy and Dan’s AA meetings. It happened fast. You were walking home from the bus stop after visiting Abra and Lucy. You decided to give your dad a call to just chat and see how he and your mom were doing. The driver came from behind you. You felt pain and then nothing. The end. Your phone was sent flying and your dad called out for you, not knowing what happened. All he heard was the thud of your body against the truck and the phone tumbling across the pavement.

Abra was a mess losing another person she loved. She cried every night and missed so many days of school that the school was concerned she wouldn’t graduate from her grade. It wasn’t until you and Dan showed up when she sought out Dan that she started healing. She hated that you were stuck as a ghost, but you looked so happy to be in the same plane of existence with Dan again. She went back to school. She cheered up. She found new friends, some who were like her. 

One night when she was climbing into bed, she reached out for you and Dan. It had been a little while since she saw you both. Abra found you and she smiled to herself.

Dan sat on an empty bench in the park nearby, his arm resting on the back of it. You were beside him, cuddled up against his side watching the few people still out walk by. No one could see you two. You looked up at Dan and he quickly met your gaze with a gentle smile. You kissed him and snuggled closer to him.

Abra left after that. Her smile remained even after she fell asleep. 

Not even death could stop you and Dan from loving one another. She slept dreaming of a love of her own in the future, one that would never end no matter what.

**Author's Note:**

> Never written something in this fandom or in this genre of supernatural. I hope you enjoyed it all the same! Feedback is welcomed!


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